Tuesday Tip: How to start a press release

Where to begin?

The best place to start a press release is to write the quote you want to include on it. You always want to make sure you’ve got a quote fairly high up in your press release, best is third paragraph. This means you’ve given journalists the best chance to quote you saying something you actually wanted to be quoted as saying.

In your final version of your release you want this quote to be around 50 to 100 words and in self-contained sentences so that if anything is lifted out, for reasons of keeping a story tight and short, then your context isn’t lost.

The benefit of starting here is you can test out if you really have something to say at all! And a quote is the only part of a press release where you can express a point of view or an emotion so this is often easiest to write.

For more information about writing a press release, including a proven formula which includes all the elements sought by journalists get my book Exposure, published 14 June.

And if you live anywhere near Bristol, UK and are available on 27 June 2022 come and ask me your questions at Waterstones. Details here.